A report released on Monday by the United Nations Environment Programme’s Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals, authored by Professor Boris Culik of Kiel University in Germany, depicts a very sad state of affairs for the toothed cetaceans in our oceans. “The conservation status of toothed whales has worsened dramatically since 2001,” stated Dr. Culik.

Entanglement in gillnets, traps, weirs, purse seines, longlines and trawls are having a negative impact on 62 of the 72 species of toothed whales, dolphins and porpoises in our global ocean. Unfortunately, if they steer clear of the nets and lines, they have to contend with water-borne pollution (including heavy metals, PCBs, DDT) and noise pollution.

We may have stopped deliberately hunting whales, but we haven’t stopped killing them.